Method for delivery of gas-enriched fluids

ABSTRACT

A system and method for delivering a gas-supersaturated fluid comprising a fluid reservoir, a fluid pump, a gas source, a high pressure gas exchanger, and one or more arrays of capillary channels is disclosed. Suitable controls such as differential pressure gauge and valves are provided to maintain a near constant hydrostatic pressure of the fluid within the semi-permeable membrane gas-fluid interface of the gas exchanger at approximately 1% to 20% higher than the gas partial pressure of the fluid within the gas exchanger. Gas-supersaturated fluid output from the gas exchanger via the capillary channels is at a flow velocity of greater than 0.05 m/sec, thereby facilitating delivery of large flow rates of gas-supersaturated fluids without cavitation inception.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.09/174,739, filed Oct. 19, 1998 now abandoned, which is a divisionalapplication of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/840,908, filed Apr.16, 1997, now abandoned, which is a continuation-in-part of copendingU.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/453,660, filed May 30, 1995 (nowU.S. Pat. No. 5,735,934), which is a divisional application of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 08/273,652, filed Jul. 12, 1994 (now U.S.Pat. No 5,569,180), which is a continuation-in part of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 08/152,589, filed Nov. 15, 1993 (now U.S. Pat. No.5,407,426), each of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to a system and method fordelivering gas-supersaturated fluids. More specifically, the presentinvention relates to a system and method for deliveringgas-supersaturated fluids to a gas-depleted site without the prematureformation of bubbles.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In many industrial and clinical environments, it is desirable to delivera gas-enriched fluid to a site of interest, and/or increase the gasconcentration of a fluid without a significant increase in the fluidvolume.

For example, a fire may be extinguished by delivering an inflammable oran inert gas, such as carbon dioxide or nitrogen, rapidly to the firevia a fluid transporting medium. Environmental problems presented bytoxic site cleanups may be ameliorated by delivering a highconcentration of a neutralizing or cleansing gaseous agent to the toxicsite. The oxygenation level of ponds used in fish farms, and theoxygenation level of waste streams (prior to their release into theenvironment) may also be increased by delivery of oxygen-enriched fluidsto the ponds or streams.

One method of obtaining an increase in the gas concentration levelwithout significant increase in fluid volume is by directly pumping adesired gas into a fluid site of interest. However, such direct pumpingis not always efficient and may thereby result in an insufficientincrease in gas concentration. Where a noxious gas is used, directpumping also poses waste engineering problems and/or health hazard dueto the presence of any unabsorbed noxious gas.

Another method of obtaining an increase in the gas concentration levelwithout significant increase in fluid volume is by infusing agas-enriched fluid, such as a gas-supersaturated fluid, into the site ofinterest. To create a gas-supersaturated fluid, high pressurecompression of a gas-liquid mixture can be performed, for example, withthe use of a high pressure gas exchanger. Prior art systems forproducing gas-supersaturated fluids typically require the use of a highpressure vessel to provide dwell time for dissolving gas nuclei in thefluid outputted from the high pressure gas exchanger. Two such prior artsystems are U.S. Pat. No. 5,407,426, “Method and Apparatus ForDelivering Oxygen Into Blood” to Spears and U.S. Pat. No. 5,569,180,“Method For Delivering A Gas-Supersaturated Fluid To A Gas-Depleted SiteAnd Use Thereof” to Spears.

In addition, gas nuclei may be present in the fluid prior tosupersaturating the fluid with gas. For example, gas nuclei may be dustparticles suspended in the fluid or crevices in the container wall inwhich gas is trapped or absorbed. The presence of gas nuclei facilitatescavitation inception (or, bubble formation), resulting in release of gasfrom the liquid and thereby decreasing the gas concentration of thefluid.

Furthermore, some prior art systems also require a high pressure (>70bar) fluid pump to deliver the gas-supersaturated fluid. Particularly inindustrial applications (where it may be necessary to deliver largevolumes of a gas-enriched fluid to a site of interest), such prior artsystems may prove impractical because of the overall complexity, cost,and time associated with operating them.

Another problem associated some of the prior art devices in infusinggas-supersaturated fluid from a high pressure vessel into a site ofinterest is that cavitation inception at or near the exit ports oftenresults. Cavitation inception may occur because ejection of the fluidinto an atmospheric environment results in a decrease in the hydrostaticpressure of the fluid below the gas partial pressure. Disturbances at ornear the exit ports may further facilitate cavitation inception. Whencavitation takes place, gas is released from the fluid, decreasing itsgas concentration. Furthermore, the presence of bubbles in the fluidgenerates turbulence and impedes the flow of the fluid beyond the exitports.

Accordingly, there remains a need in the art for a simple, efficient andcost-effective system and method for producing and deliveringgas-supersaturated fluid to a site of interest which does not require ahigh pressure vessel to provide dwell time and which does not require ahigh pressure fluid pump for delivery of the gas-supersaturated fluid.There remains a further need for a system and method for producing anddelivering gas-supersaturated fluid to a site of interest withoutcavitation inception in the fluid during ejection, particularly at ornear the exit ports.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Preferred embodiments of the present invention meet the foregoing needsby providing a system and method for delivering gas-enriched fluid to asite of interest. Such a system includes a fluid reservoir, a fluidpump, a gas source, a high pressure gas exchanger, and one or morearrays of capillary channels for delivery of gas-supersaturated fluid.Differential pressure gauges and other suitable controls may be providedto maintain a near constant hydrostatic pressure of the fluid throughoutthe delivery system that is approximately 1% to 20% higher than the gaspressure within the housing of the high pressure gas exchanger. Thedelivery system may also include a fluid filter for filtering the fluidbefore it enters the fluid reservoir.

The system and method of the present invention requires relatively lowhydrostatic pressures and eliminates the need for a high pressure vesselfor providing a dwell time for dissolving gas nuclei in the fluid. Thesystem and method of the present invention also eliminates the need fora high pressure fluid pump for high output delivery of thegas-supersaturated fluid. Furthermore, the system and method of thepresent invention reduces or eliminates gas nuclei on the inner surfaceof the exit ports through which the gas-supersaturated fluid exits, inpart by providing exit ports with a relatively small diameter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a system for delivery of gas-supersaturated fluidsaccording to a preferred embodiment.

FIG. 2 shows a system for delivery of gas-supersaturated fluidsaccording to an alternative embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The structure and function of the preferred embodiments can best beunderstood by reference to the drawings. The reader will note that thesame reference numerals appear in multiple figures. Where this is thecase, the numerals refer to the same or corresponding structure in thosefigures.

As shown in FIG. 1, delivery system 10 includes fluid reservoir 12,fluid pump 14, gas source 16, high pressure gas exchanger 18, deliverytube 36, and one or more arrays of capillary channels 20. High pressuregas exchanger 18 preferably includes an outer gas tight housingsurrounding semi-permeable membrane gas-fluid interface 26, such as anoxygenator, which comprises a gas permeable and at least substantiallyfluid impervious container. Differential pressure gauge 22 is providedto measure the difference between the gas pressure in interior 40 andthe hydrostatic pressure within gas-fluid interface 26. Differentialpressure gauge 22 and other suitable controls are provided to maintain anear constant hydrostatic pressure within gas-fluid interface 26approximately 1% to 20%, higher than the gas pressure in interior 40within housing 34 of high pressure gas exchanger 18. The higherhydrostatic pressure within gas-fluid interface 26 facilitates thedissolution of gas in the fluid in interior 40.

Delivery system 10 may also include a fluid filter 24 to filter fluidbefore it enters fluid reservoir 12. Fluid filter 24 is preferably astandard, commercially available filter such as porous sintered metalfilters manufactured by Mott Metallurgical.

Fluid pump 14 pumps fluid from fluid reservoir 12 into gas-fluidinterface 26 via input tube 28. As previously described, gas-fluidinterface 26 is located within gas exchanger 18 surrounded by gascontaining interior space 40. Gas-fluid interface 26 preferablyincorporates silicone, such as silicone membranes or silicone tubules,as the gas exchanging media. Hollow microporous polypropylene tubes mayalso be used as a gas exchanging media. Where gas source 16 contains acorrosive gas such as ozone, gas-fluid interface 26 is made of corrosiveresistant materials such as certain plastics, stainless steel, glass,Kevlar, silicone, silicone rubber or platinum, and gold plated softmetal seals may also be utilized.

Output 30 of gas-fluid interface 26 is coupled to output 32 of highpressure gas exchanger 18, which is in turn coupled to output tube 36.Fluid exits output tube 36 via capillary channels 20.

Capillary channels 20 are preferably cylindrical, and have a relativelysmall diameter which helps to stabilize the gas supersaturated fluidupon ejection. Capillary channels 20 may also have slit-like,rectangular, square, triangular, and annular cross-sectional shapes.

Where channels 20 have a circular cross-section, the inner diameter ofeach of capillary channels 20 is preferably within the approximate rangeof 25 to 300 μm. Using capillary channels with inner diameters of lessthan about 25 μm is possible, but may require a large number of suchchannels to be used to compensate for the higher flow resistance. Inaddition, the use of capillary channels with inner diameters of lessthan about 25 μm may also increase the likelihood that such channelswill become blocked with particulates. On the other hand, the use ofcapillary channels with inner diameters larger than about 300 μm may noteffectively stabilize fluids supersaturated gases, such as oxygen, athigh partial pressures.

Capillary channels 20 are preferably non-hydrophobic with a smooth innersurface. Although plastic channels (such as polyimide channels), andmetal channels (such as stainless steel channels), can be used, glass orsilica channels generally provide a smoother inner surface, are lessexpensive to obtain commercially, and large arrays of parallel glass orsilica channels can be easily fabricated. Moreover, large numbers ofparallel channels within glass plates may also be easily obtainedcommercially. Glass and silica provide the additional benefit of beingchemically inert in many environments, and thus are less likely to reactwith the gas-supersaturated fluid. Glass and silica channels can also becleaned with harsh solvents with little or no damage.

In operation, gas is delivered from gas source 16 to interior 40 of highpressure gas exchanger 18 via gas input tube 38. Preferably, gas withininterior 40 of high pressure gas exchanger 18 is maintained at apressure of approximately 8 to 50 bar. Differential pressure gauge 22and other suitable controls are provided to maintain a near constanthydrostatic pressure within gas-fluid interface 26 approximately 1% to20% higher than gas pressure within interior 40 of high pressure gasexchanger 18. More preferably, the near constant hydrostatic pressurewithin gas-fluid interface 26 is approximately 9 to 51 bar, which isslightly higher than the gas pressure within interior 40 of highpressure gas exchanger 18.

One example of a suitable control is to adjust the rate of the fluidflow from fluid pump 14 into gas-fluid interface 26. Pressuredifferential gauge 22 may provide electrical signals to fluid pump 14and/or to gas source 16 via electrical signals carrier 48. Thus, inresponse to the electrical signals, fluid flow rate from fluid pump 14would be adjusted accordingly so as to achieve and maintain properhydrostatic pressures within gas-fluid interface 26 and proper pressuredifferences between the hydrostatic pressure and the gas pressure withininterior 40. Another example of a suitable control is to adjust the rateof the fluid flow from gas exchanger 18 to the site of interest byadjusting fluid valve 23 so as to achieve and maintain properhydrostatic pressures within gas-fluid interface 26 and proper pressuredifferences between the hydrostatic pressure and the gas pressure withininterior 40. Where a variable fluid flow rate from gas exchanger 18 tothe site of interest is desired, differential pressure gauge 22regulates the gas flow rate from gas source 16 and regulates a gasrelease valve (not shown) for selective release of gas from within gasexchanger 18 in order to vary the fluid flow rate from gas exchanger 18.

Because the peak hydrostatic pressure required for the fluid in deliverysystem 10 (i.e. fluid in input tube 28, gas-fluid interface 26, anddelivery tube 36) is approximately 1% to 20% higher than the gas partialpressure, overt gas pockets in the gas-supersaturated fluid do notcreate active, bubble generating gas nuclei at the tube-liquidinterface. Because the pressure differential prevents generation ofactive, bubble generating gas nuclei, the need for a dwell time fordissolving gas nuclei in the fluid and the corresponding need for a highpressure vessel to provide the dwell time are eliminated. Once fluidvalve 23 is opened and a constant supply of fluid from fluid reservoir12 is established, stabilized flow of gas-supersaturated liquid into agas-depleted site of interest via output tube 36 and capillary channels20 can proceed continuously with minimum supervision.

Referring now to FIG. 2, delivery system 10 may be configured such thatgas-deficient fluid pumped by fluid pump 14 can bypass high pressure gasexchanger 18 via bypass tube 42 and be delivered to capillary channels20 via output tube 36, for initial flushing of capillary channels 20.Delivery system 10 may further provide valves 44, 46 which may be in aninitial bypass position or an operational position. During the initialflushing, valves 44, 46 are in the initial bypass position which allowfluid to flow from input tube 28 directly to output tube 36 via bypasstube 42 and prevent fluid from entering high pressure gas exchanger 18.After the initial flushing procedure, valves 44, 46 are in theoperational position which allow fluid to flow from input tube 28 tooutput tube 36 via high pressure gas exchanger 18 and prevent fluid fromentering bypass tube 42.

This procedure of flushing capillary channels 20 facilitates eliminationof surface nuclei within capillary channels 20 because the surface gasnuclei can be relatively easily absorbed by the gas-deficient fluid andbecause the velocity of the fluid flow through channels 20 may result influshing out the surface gas nuclei from channels 20. Thus, the initialflushing procedure may be used to facilitate high volume delivery ofgas-supersaturated fluid to the site of interest without cavitationinception despite a relatively low hydrostatic pressure of approximately9 to 51 bar.

Delivery of gas-supersaturated fluid through capillary channels 20 at ahigh velocity provides an additional mechanism for reducing oreliminating gas nuclei at the interface between the inner surface ofcapillary channels 20 and the gas-supersaturated fluid. Specifically,high velocity flow may reduce or eliminate gas nuclei at thechannel-fluid interface due to a possible Venturi effect at thechannel-fluid interface. The high velocity flow and possible associatedVenturi effect acts to flush gas nuclei from the inner surface ofcapillary channels 20 before the gas nuclei can grow large enough tobecome active and cause trains of bubbles to form.

High velocity flow further inhibits bubble formation because there isinsufficient time for nucleation and bubble growth in the fluid withincapillary channels 20, before the fluid exits the capillary channels.After the gas-supersaturated fluid exits capillary channels 20,subcritical bubble nuclei, i.e. a bubble nuclei of size insufficient forbubble formation, are reabsorbed into the fluid and relatively rapidmixing of the fluid with liquids in the external environment occursunder ambient atmospheric pressure.

The velocity of fluid exiting capillary channels 20 is preferablygreater than 0.05 m/sec, and more preferably in the range of 0.5 m/secto 10 m/sec. As an example, a parallel array of 55 fused silicacapillary channels 20 each having an inner diameter of about 150 μm anda length of about 10 cm can be used to deliver 800 ml/min of watercontaining oxygen dissolved at a partial pressure of 20.5 bar, at ahydrostatic pressure of 22.5 bar. The mean flow velocity of theoxygen-supersaturated water through each channel 20 would beapproximately 13 m/sec.

Applications for preferred embodiments include many different gas-liquidcombinations, which may be a mixture of a plurality of gases and/orliquids.

For example, system 10 may be used for relatively quick and inexpensivelarge scale delivery of oxygen-supersaturated water into fluid requiringaeration, such as potable water, municipal water, wastewater, water inbioreactors, fisheries, ponds, lakes, streams, wells, swimming pools,baths and hot tubs. oxygenation of such bodies of water using oxygensupersaturated liquid generated by system 10 would be more rapid thanaeration by directly pumping gas into the site of interest, and allowsprecise control of the final oxygen concentration in the site ofinterest.

In addition, relatively high oxygen concentrations, for example, 10 mg/Lor greater, can be achieved in the external environment because thepreferred embodiments provide a gas transfer efficiency of nearly 100%;thus, almost all of the dissolved gas delivered is absorbed by theoxygen-deficient body of water. As a result, a relatively smaller volumeof oxygen-supersaturated water is required to adequately aerate anoxygen-deficient body of water. For example, the volume of watersuper-saturated with oxygen at 21 bar partial pressure necessary toadequately aerate wastewater would be a small fraction of the volume ofthe wastewater, depending on the B.O.D. (biologic oxygen demand) level.Furthermore, for treatment of many types of large bodies ofgas-deficient fluids, a small portion of the fluid, after filtration,can be used as the fluid source for preparation of thegas-supersaturated fluid to be recycled back into the large body offluid. Thus, by utilizing gas-deficient fluid from the body of fluid tobe aerated as a fluid source, the volume of body of fluid is notincreased.

Hyperbaric gas concentration levels are achievable in the external bodyof fluid to be aerated. If the mean velocity of the effluent isrelatively low, for example less than 5 m/sec, and the volume of fluidin the external body of fluid is small relative to the effluent volumeflow rate per minute, for example ratios of 10:1, resulting in aturnover of gas-supersaturated water approximately every 10 minutes, ahyperbaric gas level can be achieved and maintained in the external bodyof fluid.

When such an approach is utilized to deliver an oxygen-supersaturatedeffluent to an external body of fluid, an oxygen bath is therebyprovided where the PO₂ in the external body of fluid is in the range ofat least approximately 5-10 bar. Such an oxygen bath may be utilized forneonates and infants with respiratory insufficiency to increase theoxygen levels in the general circulation. Both the higher permeabilityof human neonatal skin relative to that of adults and the relativelyhigh ratio of the neonatal body surface area to the neonatal body volumefacilitate the transport of oxygen from the oxygen bath across the skininto the general circulation. For older individuals, the high oxygenlevel in an oxygen bath may also be utilized to enhance healing ofsuperficial wounds, such as burns, and to enhance collagen synthesis ofotherwise normal, but relatively oxygen-poor skin.

Another application of preferred embodiments is the infusion ofozone-supersaturated fluid into various types of fluids. The ozone maybe generated, for example, within gas source 16 or within housing 34 ofhigh pressure gas exchanger 18 by utilizing high voltage arcs.Ozone-supersaturated fluid infusion can be used for disinfection,flocculation, oxidation of dissolved metals, odor control, and oxidationof organic material.

For example, when system 10 is used for the delivery of an effluentsupersaturated with a non-toxic gas into, for example, wastewater,microorganisms and other organic matters may grow and accumulate ongas-fluid interface 26 over time, thereby reducing its gas transferefficiency. To alleviate or eliminate such growth and accumulation,system 10 may also be used for the periodic and temporary delivery ofozone-enriched or ozone-supersaturated fluid. The ozone would kill themicroorganisms and oxidize the organic materials, which would then bemore easily flushed from gas-fluid interface 26. In addition oralternatively, a suitable solvent such as alcohol, acetone, or a strongacid or base may be flushed through gas exchanger 18 to clean gas-fluidinterface 26 of microorganisms and organic matter. Thus, the periodicand temporary delivery of effluent containing ozone and/or a suitablesolvent would sterilize and disinfect system 10 of organic elements aswell as to flush out any accumulated debris. Furthermore, because of therelatively high solubility of ozone in water, a high ozone concentrationcan be achieved at partial pressures of only approximately 3 to 10 bar.

A concern with infusing ozone-supersaturated fluid into a site ofinterest is that the half-life of ozone in ordinary tapwater isgenerally in the range of 10 to 20 minutes. Thus, because of thehalf-life of ozone, rapid delivery of ozone-supersaturated fluid isdesirable. By using system 10, ozone-supersaturated water from highpressure gas exchanger 18 can be delivered at high velocities viacapillary channels 20 within a few seconds, resulting in very littleloss of activity of the dissolved ozone. And because the ozone deliveredremains dissolved (that is, it does not bubble out of fluid) there isless concern that ozone will enter the atmosphere. As a result, theozone-supersaturated water can be used to treat open bodies of water,such as reservoirs, lakes, ponds, streams, rivers, swimming pools, aswell as groundwater, well water, and water within closed chambers.

Bioreactors often use carbon monoxide as a carbon source for synthesisof organic compounds by anaerobic bacteria. Because carbon monoxide hasa low solubility in water and consumption of the gas by the anaerobicbacteria can be relatively high, it may be difficult to maintain asufficient carbon monoxide supply in a bioreactor. An infusion of carbonmonoxide-supersaturated water generated by system 10 could be used toprovide an efficient and controlled means for increasing the level ofcarbon monoxide in a bioreactor. Other gases, such as nitrogen sources,may be useful for the growth of other types of organisms.

To extinguish a fire, it may be desirable to deliver a fluidsupersaturated with an inert gas, such as nitrogen or carbon dioxide,rapidly to the fire without premature liberation of the inert gas fromits dissolved state in the fluid. Upon high velocity delivery of fluidsupersaturated with an inert gas, a fire can be extinguished withgreater efficiency than with the use of water alone because of thedisplacement of oxygen in the air with the inert gas, cooling of thefluid during gas expansion, and the dispersion of the fluid upon gasexpansion.

Liquids other than water may also be used in system 10 to deliver a highconcentration of a gas or a mixture gases to a site of interest. Forexample, many liquid fuels, such as diesel fuel, gasoline, kerosene andalcohols, may burn more efficiently with a high oxygen concentration.System 10 may be utilized to eject the fluid into a combustion chamber,such as the cylinders of an engine. The high solubility of oxygen inmost fuels, such as gasoline and diesel fuel, results in a high oxygenconcentration at relatively low partial pressures. In addition togreater combustion efficiency provided by a high concentration ofoxygen, the improved oxidation of the fuel could reduce some toxicgaseous byproducts associated with incomplete combustion.

Another application of the system of the present invention is snowmaking by ejecting water supersaturated with air into air having anambient temperature slightly higher than 0° C. When theair-supersaturated water exits capillary channels 20 into theatmospheric environment, there is a drop in hydrostatic pressure of thewater which results in a rapid expansion of the gas. Because the rapidexpansion of the gas lowers the temperature of the fluid, freezing ofwater droplets can occur despite an air temperature higher than 0° C.

In contrast, typical prior art snowmaking equipment uses large fans topropel water from a hose into air that is at or below 0° C. With theprior art equipment, small water droplets and ice crystals form and arepropelled into the air by the force of the fans. However, because anintact stream of water can relatively easily be propelled further thanwater droplets and ice crystals can be propelled with the force of thefans, the prior art snowmaking equipment does not achieve as great amaximum distance as the system of the present invention. With the systemof the present invention, the air-supersaturated water fluid can remainas an intact stream for sufficiently long periods because of the highflow velocity of the fluid. Due to gas bubbles nucleating from the fluidand normal hydrodynamic forces, such as Rayleigh instability, the fluidfragments in the air and form water droplets, fragments, and/or bubbles.The associated drop in temperature from expansion of the dissolved gasthen freezes the water to produce artificial snow.

The present invention has been described in terms of preferredembodiments. The invention, however, is not limited to the embodimentdepicted and described. Rather, the scope of the invention is defined bythe appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for providing gas-supersaturated fluidto an environment, comprising the steps of: delivering fluid underpressure from a fluid source to a gas exchanger; delivering gas underpressure from a gas source to the gas exchanger; controlling thepressures of the fluid and gas such that the pressure of the fluidwithin the gas exchanger is greater than the pressure of the gas withinthe gas exchanger; and delivering the gas-supersaturated fluid from thegas exchanger to the environment through one or more channels in fluidcommunication with the gas exchanger without cavitation inception. 2.The method according to claim 1, wherein the one or more channels haveinner diameters of between about 25 μm and about 300 μm.
 3. The methodaccording to claim 1, wherein the one or more channels have innerdiameters of about 100 μm.
 4. The method according to claim 1, whereinthe gas comprises one of ozone and oxygen.
 5. The method according toclaim 1, wherein the pressure of the fluid within the gas exchanger isbetween about 1% and about 20% greater than the pressure of the gaswithin the gas exchanger.
 6. The method according to claim 1, whereingas-enriched fluid is delivered to the environment at a fluid flowvelocity of greater than about 0.05 m/sec.
 7. The method according toclaim 1, wherein the environment comprises a supply of wastewater. 8.The method according to claim 1, wherein the environment comprises abioreactor.
 9. The method according to claim 1, further comprising thestep of: filtering the fluid prior to delivery of the fluid to the gasexchanger.
 10. The method according to claim 1, wherein the controllingstep comprises the step of: adjusting the fluid flow to the gasexchanger in response to a signal from a pressure differential gaugeassembly in fluid and in gaseous communication with the gas exchanger.11. The method according to claim 1, wherein the controlling stepcomprises the step of: adjusting the gas flow to the gas exchanger inresponse to a signal from a pressure differential gauge assembly influid and in gaseous communication with the gas exchanger.
 12. Themethod according to claim 1, wherein the gas-enriched fluid flow to theenvironment is adjusted in response to a signal from a pressuredifferential gauge assembly in fluid and in gaseous communication withthe gas exchanger.
 13. The method according to claim 1, wherein thegas-enriched fluid delivered to the environment comprises agas-supersaturated fluid.
 14. The method according to claim 1, whereinthe gas source comprises a supply of gas provided from a gas generator.15. The method according to claim 14, wherein the gas generatorcomprises an ozone generator.
 16. The method according to claim 1,wherein the gas exchanger comprises a housing enclosing a gas-fluidinterface and gas.
 17. The method according to claim 16, wherein thegas-fluid interface is at least partially made of silicone.
 18. Thesystem according to claim 16, wherein the gas-fluid interface is made ofcorrosion resistant materials.
 19. The method according to claim 1,wherein the fluid pressure in the gas exchanger is controlled byadjusting one or more valves in fluid communication with the one or morechannels.
 20. The method according to claim 1, wherein one or more ofthe channels is made of silica.
 21. The method according to claim 1,wherein one or more of the channels is made of glass.
 22. The methodaccording to claim 1, wherein one or more of the channels is made ofmetal.
 23. The method according to claim 1, wherein one or more of thechannels is made of a ceramic.
 24. The method according to claim 1,wherein the fluid source is in fluid communication with the one or morechannels such that fluid may bypass the gas exchanger and flow from thefluid source to the one or more channels.
 25. A method for providinggas-enriched fluid to a delivery site, comprising: providing agas-enriched fluid generator comprising a gas port, a fluid inlet port,and a fluid outlet port; and providing a fluid transport fortransporting fluid from the gas-enriched fluid generator to the deliverysite, the fluid transport comprising a first end and a second end,wherein the first end is connected to the fluid outlet port and thesecond end is disposed proximate the delivery site, wherein the fluidtransport comprises a plurality of channels proximate the second end,and wherein the channels are sized to deliver the gas-enriched fluid ina bubble-free manner.
 26. The method according to claim 25, wherein thegas port of the gas-enriched fluid generator is in gaseous communicationwith a pressurized gas source.
 27. The system according to claim 26,wherein said source of gas comprises a gas generator.
 28. The methodaccording to claim 25, wherein the fluid inlet port of the gas-enrichedfluid generator is in fluid communication with a pressurized fluidsource.
 29. The method according to claim 28, wherein the fluidtransport is in fluid communication with the fluid source such thatfluid may bypass the gas-enriched fluid generator and flow from thefluid source to the fluid transport.
 30. A The method according to claim25, further comprising the step of: controlling pressures within thegas-enriched fluid generator such that the pressure of the fluid isgreater than the gas pressure.
 31. The method according to claim 30,wherein the pressure of the fluid is between about 1% and about 20%greater than the gas pressure.
 32. A method for deliveringgas-supersaturated fluid comprising: providing means for receiving afluid and a gas; providing means for controlling pressures of the gasand of the fluid to create the gas-supersaturated fluid; and providingmeans for delivering the gas-supersaturated fluid in a bubble-freemanner.
 33. The method according to claim 25, wherein the gas-enrichedfluid delivered is a gas-supersaturated fluid.
 34. The method accordingto claim 32, wherein the gas-supersaturated fluid comprisesoxygen-supersaturated fluid.
 35. The method according to claim 32,wherein the gas-supersaturated fluid comprises ozone-supersaturatedfluid.
 36. The method according to claim 25, wherein the plurality ofchannels comprise capillaries.
 37. The method according to claim 25,wherein the gas-enriched fluid comprises oxygen-enriched fluid.
 38. Themethod according to claim 25, wherein the gas-enriched fluid comprisesozone-enriched fluid.